Lisa Mason is back with a bang

Lisa Mason took a giant leap towards her dream of competing at the 2014 Commonwealth Games by triumphing in her first competition in 13 years.

The Huntingdon Gymnastics Club member bagged a gold medal on the vault at the English Championships on Saturday, marking her return to competitive action at the age of 31.

And Mason, who was crowned the Commonwealth champion in 1998 and competed at the Sydney Olympics two years later, is determined to prove to any doubters she is ready to realise her ambition and make a dramatic return to the big stage.

"I mean business," Mason, a three-times British champion, told the BBC. "I’m not doing it for a laugh.

"I just came out here to have it as a trial competition for the British Championships, so I’m over the moon.

"Thirteen years out and to come away with a title already – I’m really, really pleased.

"I’m doing it to enjoy it and I’m loving coming back, but I just hope a lot of people are coming to the reality that I am actually coming here to do something like this."

Mason, who was inspired to return to the sport by the fervour surrounding the London Olympics last summer, will now head to the British Championships on March 22 at Liverpool’s Echo Arena.

Her aim there will be to qualify for the European Championships, which take place in Moscow in April.

A number of other Huntingdon gymnasts competed at the English Championships over the weekend, including Daniel Keatings, although he was not in the running for medals, being a guest due to his Scottish roots.